Shop

You are here

Ryan Hunter-Reay - September 20, 2012

By

Ryan Hunter-Reay posted four wins on the IZOD IndyCar Series in 2012 and became the first American to win the IZOD IndyCar Series Championship since 2006. He joined Morning Drive from New York City where he sat with his Championship trophy.

The final weekend of the season was nerve-wracking to say the very least. He knew that he had to finish 5th to win the Championship for the year and he was definitely under pressure because he wanted to win not only for himself but also for his sponsors and fans. He finished 4th in the final week and he knew that the finish would be good enough to secure the title.

He plays golf about once a week after not playing for a number of years. He enjoys playing with his friends and he also enjoys all of the challenges that come with playing golf. It can be a frustrating sport sometimes but the good tends to outweigh the bad. Ryan added that playing the golf course that is located at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Brickyard Crossing, is a great experience.

His racing career began when he starting racing go-carts. He was able to get corporate sponsorship to support his career as he moved up the ladder. It is a process to get to the top of your profession which is IndyCar racing as you go through several different leagues where you are racing different vehicles.

The best way to brand the IndyCar Series and its drivers is through the numbers of the helmets. Drivers race in open air in IndyCar which is different from NASCAR and the numbers really become the identity of the driver. Corporate sponsorship is also very important and drivers become identified with the company who sponsors their car.